Save Her Lose Us (Evangeline and Soren) novel Chapter 165

No, that wasn't right. She'd seen it for herself—Finn had a certain coldness deep in his bones.

Growing up in the Lockridge household, it was understandable, really.

Just as she was mulling this over, Finn sighed regretfully. "It's a shame I can't just drop everything at the Lockridges. If only I could be in two places at once and take care of you, too."

Evangeline listened to him, only half-interested, forcing a small smile as she prepared to say something polite. But just then, a flash of inspiration struck her.

"What kind of present do you want? I'll bring you something when I get back," Finn asked.

Evangeline's thoughts had already drifted elsewhere. She brushed him off, replying, "Just make sure you look after yourself while you're abroad. I've got something to take care of here, so I'll let you go."

As soon as she hung up, an idea took shape in her mind.

She realized she'd been thinking too narrowly.

Until now, she'd focused on making the robot more versatile, hoping broader functionality would win people over. But Finn's mention of "taking care of you" gave her a new angle.

What if, instead, they made the robot excel at a single thing—caring for people? Why not create a specialized "caregiver" model?

Without hesitating, Evangeline jotted down her ideas.

Once she'd sketched out the concept, she sent it to Theo.

A few minutes later, Theo replied, saying the idea had potential. But, he warned, a robot designed to care for different kinds of clients would need a lot of fine-tuning—things like how much force to use when supporting someone frail, or the right technique for giving a massage…

This would require expert input, months of work, and a whole lot more data.

We don't have time for this, Theo finished bluntly.

We do, Evangeline shot back.

"Then what? Don't tell me you actually care about UME," Theo scoffed. "If you really cared, you wouldn't have left UME for some guy—for your marriage."

He'd already heard bits of her story from Glenn.

Though he still doubted how good Evangeline really was, one thing was certain: she had left UME for her marriage.

Evangeline pressed her lips together, saying nothing.

She'd given up so much for Soren.

There was nothing she could say to counter Theo's accusation.

He was still waiting for an answer, stubbornly refusing to let the matter drop. After a moment's thought, Evangeline replied, "Let's just say I'm doing this for myself."

For the woman who had once been mired in the mud—she wanted to climb back up, to see all the vistas she'd missed before.